~ My Life as a Knitter

Category Archives: Famous Knitters

After a rather hectic afternoon, Richard and I set out to meet the Yarn Harlot at her book signing in Skokie yesterday. I have loved Stephanie Pearl-McPhee‘s Books and Knitting Blog ever since I became a knitter, and I figured I had better take advantage of the rare opportunity to meet her.

I am pleased to announce that Stephanie is exactly the same in person as she is in her books: funny, honest, and a really grounded person. Her perspective is endlessly refreshing and entertaining; she must be a riot at knit night.

She began the session by reading some excerpts from her new book, All Wound Up. Her new book is really funny and just as good as her other books. It was so fun to hear the new stories and adventures she had chosen to share with us.

There is something really special about hearing an author read their work. I can’t explain it. I felt the same thing when Franklin Habit came to the Windy City Knitting Guild and read from It Itches. It’s a magical experience you really shouldn’t miss. Is it because you are seeing the author’s expressions and hearing their inflection so the story is being read exactly as it was meant to be heard and not changed by our own personal moods or perspectives? I’m not sure. Richard sat with me throughout the reading and we laughed together with her stories. His assessment when she finished is that she is funny and he enjoyed listening to her speak. This was excellent news, because we sat in an hour of rush hour traffic to get there and he was starving and I was really worried he would have a bad time because he was the only non-knitter in the place.

Then she opened the session up to a quick Q&A Session and she told us a little about her writing process, the sweater she’s knitting, and her family. She told us one of her daughters is moving into her first apartment this week and that’s the moment that my heart tugged a little. We were so lucky that she was here with us. Because, really, traveling to twelve cities in fourteen days sounds glamorous; but I cannot even imagine being away from my family for so long, travelling all by myself, and sleeping in a different place every night. It must be an exhausting, lonely and emotionally draining trip for her and it’s a really a testament to her good nature because she shows up with a smile on her face and a kind word for everyone.

The book signing began and Stephanie asked everyone to let anyone who HAD to go, cut in front of the line without question and regardless of their number because that’s the way the world would be if Knitters ruled the World. I like thinking about Knitters ruling the world and I am fortunate enough that I could wait, so I kept knitting. When my number was called I walked up and Richard took a photo of her signing my book.

I was really excited we caught a photo of this because it is definitely in my Top Five Moments of 2011.

One of my favorite things about the Yarn Harlot is the way she so honestly portrays her life as a knitter. Her blog is awesome because I can actually RELATE to it and she shows the entire process of a knitted item, including the mistakes we all make. Inspired by her sweater saga, I thought it would only be fair if I shared my latest knitting blooper with her, so out came the dyslexic Clark hat.

I was happy to laugh with her about my silly mistake (not to mention the cocky way I finished the whole damn hat before turning it right side out to check on my progress). Stephanie summed it up perfectly when she declared “Experienced knitters don’t make fewer mistakes. They make larger ones faster.”

Word Sister.

After a delightfully exciting night of knitting, talking about knitting, and meeting the most famous knitter on the planet, it was time to feed Richard. So we walked over to The Bagel where Richard was able to indulge his craving for Mish Mash Soup.

I will never understand how he can consume a bowl of soup this large. They even had to give him his own ladle.

If you would like to see the Yarn Harlot’s post on her visit to Chicago, CLICK HERE. And if you met her on her tour this time around and blogged about it, leave a link in the comments so we can all read about it!

And now I have to go do the paperwork I’ve been avoiding all day because knitting is more fun than paperwork.